Verbs
Panini gave us names for many verb conjugations:
| लट् |
लङ् |
लोट् |
लिङ् |
लृट् |
लृङ् |
लुट् |
लिट् |
लुङ् |
| laṭ |
laŋ |
loṭ |
liŋ |
lRṭ |
lRŋ |
luṭ |
liṭ |
luŋ |
indicative
present |
"imperfect"
(simple past) |
"imperative"
gently suggestive |
optative
might/possibly |
future |
conditional
counterfactual |
periphrastic
future |
"perfect"
(simple past) |
"aorist"
(simple past) |
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How are they formed?
| Conjugation Names | Formation Rule | Notes |
| लट् | laṭ | Present Indicative | Stem -PS
(Primary Suffix) | E.g. bhavati. This is the normal present tense. Note: not from Root but from Stem. DVP p53 |
| लङ् | laŋ | "Imperfect"
"Preterite"
(Simple past) |
a- Stem -SS
(Secondary Suffix) | E.g. abhavat. Stem can be strong or weak. One of 3-6 semantically indistinguishable past tense forms. Secondary suffixes will be used elsewhere too. DVP p143 |
| लोट् | loṭ | "Imperative"
(but polite) | Stem -ImpS | E.g. bhavet. DVP p197 |
| लिङ् | liŋ | Optative | Stem (-i/-ya) -SS | Meaning: should, ought, had better. DVP p245 |
| लृट् | lRṭ | Future | Root +gu [+seṭ] -sya/-Shya -PS | Notes: Some verbs are in the "seṭ" category, inserting -i before suffixes. For passive Future, use Aatmanepada (A) forms even for (P) verbs. |
| लृङ् | lRŋ | conditional
counterfactual | a- [root + gu -(i)sya/Shya] -Suffix | E.g.: abhaviShyat. Notes: make a future verb, then make a past (लट्, laṭ) out of that. If some future possibility existed only in the past, that would be like a counterfactual conditional. | |
| लुट् | luṭ | periphrastic
future | [V -tR]
-[as (to be)
(in 1p,2p),
-0(in 3p)] | E.g. kartaasmi. Notes: Conjugate -tR like pitR. -tR is the agent suffix, cognate with English -er. The meaning here is as if to be the doer is to be about to do. |
| लिट् | liṭ | "Perfect"
"Reported"
(Simple past) | Root + 2x + strong|weak]stem -PerfS | Notes: babhaaShidhve, chakruh, tepim.. |
| लुङ् | luŋ | "Aorist"
(Simple Past) | Formation Rule | Notes (this work is in progress) |
The various verb-conjugating suffix classes, Primary, Secondary, Imperative, Perfect, each have their own
table of 18 special endings. Each set comes with its own pair of 3x3 tables, making the following distinctions:
- 2 Voices, "Aatmanepada" or "A" vs "Parasmaipada" or "P", supposedly "for self" or "for other", anciently, but now just a formality without a meaning difference. Even so, some verbs are one, some the other, some both.
- 3 Persons, labelled in English 1st, 2nd, and 3rd person for self,
addressee, and other, but confusingly in actual Sanskrit grammar
the same categories are called "highest" (for self), "medium"
(for addressee), and "first" ("prathama") (for other). So
"first" and "first" mean first and third persons depending if
you're reading "first" in original Sanskrit or in English. I
will use the English conventions, "1p", "2p", "3p" for
I/me/We/us, You/You/You/You, and He,She/him,her/They/them, respectively.
- 3 Numbers, Singular (sg), Dual (du) and Plural (pl). In English we skip the dual,
but it's convenient for symmetry of body parts, paired roles,
emotional contrasts, and single-bit differences generally.
- In short: Verbs don't care what is the gender of the subject, only its Person and Number.
And different verbs use the (A) and (P) sets of endings.
In my experience a person who memorizes the following 72 verbal
suffixes (and maybe 300 noun suffixes), often discovers themselves to
be a different person afterwards, a person with mental powers
previously unsuspected and undeveloped.
PS: Primary Suffixes (used in लट् and लृट्):
| Parasmaipada | Aatmanepada |
| Sg | Du | Pl | Sg | Du | Pl |
| 3p | -ti | -tah | -(a)nti | -te | -aate | -ante |
| 2p | -si | -thah | -tha | -se | -aathe | -dhve |
| 1p | -(aa)mi | -(aa)vah | -(aa)mah | -e | -(aa)vahe | -(aa)mahe |
SS: Secondary Suffixes (used in लङ् लिङ् लृङ् लुङ्):
| Parasmaipada | Aatmanepada |
| Sg | Du | Pl | Sg | Du | Pl |
| 3p | -t | -taam | -an/-uh | -ta | -aataam | -anta/-ata/-ran |
| 2p | -s | -tam | -ta | -thaah | -aathaam | -dhvam |
| 1p | -am | -va | -ma | -i/-e | -vahi | -mahi |
ImpS: लोट् or Imperative Suffixes:
| Parasmaipada | Aatmanepada |
| Sg | Du | Pl | Sg | Du | Pl |
| 3p | -tu | -taam | -antu/-atu | -tam | -aataam | -antaam/-ataam |
| 2p | -0/-dhi/-hi | -tam | -ta | -sva | -aathaam | -dhvam |
| 1p | -aani | -aava | -aama | -ai | -aavahe | -aamahe |
PerfS: लिट् or Perfect Suffixes:
| Parasmaipada | Aatmanepada |
| Sg | Du | Pl | Sg | Du | Pl |
| 3p | -a/-au | -atuh | -uh | -e | -aate | -(i)re |
| 2p | -tha | -athuh | -a | -se | -aathe | -(i)dhve |
| 1p | -a/-au | -(i)va | -(i)ma | -e | -(i)vahe | -(i)mahe |
Nouns
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Key with abbreviations, grammar, other resources
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